Economic Progress Does Not Justify Everything

Pedro Arenas, Bristol, August 15, 2011

Land conflicts in ancestral Mapuche territory date back five centuries when the Spanish, with the aim of evangelizing and searching for gold, invaded Mapuche territory. After the independence of Chile and Argentina the territory was again invaded to provide natural resources to the newly created states. Today Mapuche ancestral territory is under threat from forestry, hydroelectric and mining multinationals who intend to continue to despoil and degrade Mapuche territory (in breach of international conventions, such as ILO 169 which seek to protect the rights of indigenous peoples and their territories).

The Kingdom of Araucania and Patagonia was born in 1860 when Mapuche leaders realized that the only way to save them from the imminent invasion of Chile and Argentina was the creation of a legally constituted state and to obtain international recognition. They chose the European style constitutional monarchy with Aurelio Antonio I as their first king. This was a much debated democratic decision agreed by the tribal chiefs or (Lonko’s) (national) assembly meeting known as Futa Kollog. The primary  reason for which the leaders chose to make such a decision was to preserve the most precious possession of the Mapuche, and by extension for any Indigenous people; their land, the precious Mapuche territory, which represents their most highly treasured and sacred possession. It is not only essential for survival, but also has a special meaning for their identity and spirituality.

After two year of its existence, Chile and Argentina invaded the Mapuche territory and the war which they subsequently waged, continued for 15 years. The region has been occupied by outsiders for nearly 150 year but the Mapuche never gave up sovereignty over their territory. The preservation of their land and culture based upon a close relationship with Mother Earth remains at the heart of their cultural identity and forms the basis of their existence; it was so before the Spaniards arrived and remains so in the age of globalization, when multi-national companies degrade and spoil this common home that we call Earth.

The maintenance of lifestyles constructed in perfect harmony with the laws of nature that these indigenous people practice is a sustainable model to emulate if we truly want to preserve the earth for future generations. Indigenous peoples have an esteemed and ancient cultural background based on environmental preservation, so their traditional knowledge and understanding of the environment around them are valuable contributions for a culture of sustainability. Any progressive government would be fortunate to benefit from the indigenous peoples’ knowledge within its cultural heritage. Any such government would be wise to have the wisdom and foresight to protect this heritage by ensuring that the native people have the rights to their own land secured. Indigenous people and their knowledge systems can play a special role in the conservation and sustainable management of a nation’s natural resources due to their highly specialized knowledge of the environment and natural resources.

However, for many countries their indigenous people are commonly the most marginalized, vulnerable and underprivileged of the population. Chile can be considered as a paradigmatic example of this, in which social exclusion and racism are widespread in regard to their indigenous population. The Mapuche people are marginalized, pursued under the judicial system and submitted to a process of progressive impoverishment whilst living within their own territory and beyond whilst, at the same time, the government´s savage economic liberalization has allowed multinational enterprises to obtain enormous benefits while degrading and destroying the natural resources of the ancestral territory. Business executives involved in these abuses, which can be said to have sold their souls to the devil, have a great amount of influence on Chilean government.  Big forestry, mineral and hydroelectric companies attain huge profits, none of which are passed on to the Mapuche, whilst causing environmental degradation of traditional ancestral Mapuche territory known as Wallmapu.

Economist Thomas Friedman said “the social commitment of companies is their operating account”; the savage economic liberalism prevalent in the Chilean government certainly shares this economic philosophy. These relentless politics set in motion in the name of equality, progress and welfare (the welfare of a few) is based on the expropriation of the Mapuche people´s land; these people have thus become stateless, disenfranchised in their own territory and stripped of their lands under the cover of special legislation establishing the state’s private domain on the supposedly vacant lands.

There are valid international laws establishing indigenous people’s rights to decide on policies affecting their lands. They also have the right to make use of them; however the economic interests of large companies and land owners, in complicity with politicians, block their effect and application. UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People makes clear that development projects on indigenous lands must have the free and informed prior consent of the indigenous population concerned. Nonetheless, the Chilean government continues to deny any process of genuine consultation with Mapuche organizations and traditional authorities.

If the Chilean government wishes to achieve the social integration of their largest ethnic minority, the restitution of lands would appear to be one of the primary measures to be taken, since land is the most important source of income for the Mapuche communities and is also the only way to stop the bleeding of migration to the cities. On the other hand, these policies seem to be part of a premeditated and well thought out political strategy for the disintegration of the Mapuche identity and racial uniformity sought by the Chilean government under the euphemism they label “Chileanism” or the “Chilean way’’.

The Chilean government certainly is sitting on the fence; it must choose between its obligation to comply with signed agreements (ILO 169; UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, all of them signed by Chile and Argentina) and its involvement with multinationals operating in the Mapuche territory. This UN Agreement is an obstacle to its short and long term aspirations of economic plans and assimilation of the Mapuche population. The government entirely ignores these laws with impunity and with the passivity of the international community. The “Chilean way” directly corresponds to the mutually beneficial agendas of large national and multinational companies (as demonstrated with the Hidroaysen conflict). The primacy of big companies’ interests is accomplished through mechanisms resembling the corrupt dealing of mafia groups, a work ethic mirrored in each and every project undertaken. Firstly, the mega companies’ managers apply pressure upon Chilean politicians and these politicians subsequently distort the facts, ignoring negative environmental reports in order to rush through their approval. Finally the security forces crack down on any type of opposition to these projects through fierce violence including murders, detentions, physical abuse and defamation of the traditional indigenous leaders who promote resistance to them, with accusations of opposing the welfare and development of the region and of lack of patriotism.

Increasingly evident at this juncture is Dr Johnson’s maxim: “patriotism is the last refuge of scoundrels”. These short-sighted patriots make accusations against their opponents of being unpatriotic when they are defending their land from environmental degradation and defending their social, cultural and even economic values of the land which belong to them. Politicians aim simply to take care of the interests of the economic elites to which they themselves belong, who base their power in the marginalization, discrimination and destruction of those who obstruct their economic goals. To them, whilst enjoying such benefits, everything is deemed to be harmonious, so long as they have the resources with which to feed the outrageous demands of the consumer society that they advertise in their own media, sustainability and the earth’s wellbeing do not matter, and even less so do the indigenous peoples. In the name of progress anything permitted and those who oppose their projects are refractories. These champions of liberalism think opponents should be persecuted, judged and condemned for attacking the free market and supporting environmental conservation. What is really shocking is that there are people who plan to impair the sustainment of the planet, in order to enhance business and to increase their profits in the name of progress however they do not realize that it is in fact quite the opposite, that is, taking genuine care the planet is the only way to true progress.

Susan Lee, director of American Regional Program of International Amnesty, recently stated: “After centuries of abuse and discrimination, cultural and physical survival is now in danger because there is insufficient will to recognize, respect and protect Indigenous’ rights when they are considered an obstacle to economic growth”.

Above all, in the Mapuche political conflict it is necessary to return the land to its rightful owners; the agreements signed with the Spanish Royal House and the States of Chile and Argentina in 19th century provide a legal basis for this. It is not a gift from Chile and Argentina, but a matter of international law. There are at least 49 signed treaties which recognize the sovereignty of the Mapuche Nation’s south of the Bio Bio and Colorado rivers. Many communities have proposed to recover their lands by the occupation of farms, a process which is harshly contested by the state by means of excessive violence and repression. It is necessary to be aware that Mapuche activists have not only the moral rights but the legal rights too, as well as their need for their land as a source of livelihood and a spiritual means of survival.

I sincerely believe that it is the duty of all to safeguard the rights of these indigenous peoples and to improve their welfare. Firstly as a matter of social justice as they have the right to respect for their traditions and means of life, in particular where they remain in their ancestral territory, fundamentally as this is the first step toward the resolution of the political conflicts to which have been forcibly induced, such as the currently Wallmapu ancestral territory scenario. Finally, it would be beneficial for the ecological health of the planet; we have much to learn from their environmental values and understanding of the laws of nature. Over-exploitation of natural resources will eventually have catastrophic consequences as the world´s resources are not infinite. Economic progress is not a means by which one may justify without ethical foundations, much less the marginalization and discrimination of indigenous people. It is our collective duty, therefore, to demand the right of these peoples to fully participate in determining political strategies concerning their territories and strengthening their identities, values and culture, thus ensuring a secure and sustainable future inclusive of all.

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